The Loire Valley, especially Blois and the Châteaux of the Loire by Rosemary Kneipp & Jean Michel Avril

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Christmas Hankies – Mouchoirs de noël

Date: December 19, 2015

Author: avril

I don’t know if many people still use handkerchiefs in France (or anywhere else in fact), but when they do, these Cholet handkerchiefs seen on the market in Blois just before Christmas, are considered to be the best choice.The history of the Cholet handkerchief goes back to the Vendée wars on the Atlantic coast of France. On 17th October 1793, the great battle of Cholet was fought with three opponents: the inhabitants of Vendée – Elbée Bonchamps, Rcohejacquelein and Stofflet,,those of Beaupuy – Travot, Marceau and Kleber – and finally, the people of Mayence . Henri de la Rochejacquelein wore three white handkerchiefs from Cholet – on his hat, his chest and side, so that his men would recognise him – but he was a clear target for the Republicans as well. Having used one of the handkerchiefs to mop up a bloody wound, it became red with blood. It was this act of bravoury that Théodore Botrel immortalised in his song Le mouchoir rouge de Cholet in 1898. Since then, the traditional Cholet handkerchief, created by a local manufacturer, Léon Maret, has always been red with white stripes. The public, however, prefers them to be white! You can listen to the song by clicking here.

So much history surrounds you, even to the humble handkerchief!
It made me remember that a set of handkerchiefs used to be a standard Christmas gift many years ago.Helen recently posted…Wainwright’s Coast to Coast – Day 6

I use hankies and am always pleased to see that they are still available in the markets in France. There was a time when I couldn’t find hankies to buy in the UK and had to wait until I visited my parents in a small Australian town, where there is a small independent outfitters who still stocks hankies.

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The Loire and city of Blois

The Loire River is the longest river in France, covering more than 1,000 km from its source in the Massif Central to its mouth in the Bay of Biscay in the Atlantic Ocean. The main towns are Nevers, Orleans, Blois, Tours and Nantes. It is famous for its châteaux, particularly Chenonceau, Chambord, Chaumont and Cheverny, and its vineyards. The Loire Valley, a World Heritage Site, spanning about 300 km, is located in the middle stretch, 2 to 3 hours south of Paris.

Blois, where I live, is a town of 50,000 people ideally located for visiting the area. Although much was destroyed during the war, it still has some lovely old streets winding up the steep banks of the Loire. It was once the centre of the French Renaissance with a prestigious castle. Louis XII, king of France in 1498, was born there in 1462. One of its citizens, Denis Papin, invented the steam engine in 1647 and the illusionist Louis-Eugène Roubert-Houdin, born in 1805, is celebrated in the “House of Magic” just opposite the castle.